Deleting Duplicate Contacts in Outlook 2003/2007

I just purchased a new SmartPhone (the BlackJack II) a couple of weeks ago, and I noticed that when it first synced with my Outlook 2007 - it duplicated all of the contacts. With over 900 contacts saved from over the years, I did not want to have to go back and delete all of the duplicates. It seems like this is a common problem, because Microsoft had a workaround solution on their website.

Disclaimer: This solution permanently deletes records from you contact list. Take extreme precaution that you delete the correct records. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK - AskPresario.com is not liable for any data loss that may come from the use of this solution.

How to Delete Duplicate Items

Use the following steps to duplicate items:

1. Go to your contacts section. In Outlook 2007 and in Outlook 2002, point to Current View on the View menu, and then click to change the folder view to a table type view. In Outlook 2003, point to Arrange By on the View menu, point to Current View, and then click to change the folder view to a table type view. An example of a table view is Phone List, By Category, or By Company. The card views such as Business Cards, Address Cards, or Detailed Address Cards will not work for this solution.

2. Right-click a column heading, and then click Field Chooser.

3. From the list at the top of the Field Chooser, click to select the All fields.

4. Drag the Modified field to the table heading.

5. Verify that the duplicate items have a unique date from the original set of items. If it is unique, click the Modified heading so that the items are sorted by this field.

6. Click the first item in the set that you want to delete, scroll to the last item in the set that you want to delete, and then click the last item while you hold down the SHIFT key.

7. Press DELETE to permanently delete all selected items. This is not reversible - so make sure that you are deleting the duplicates - not the originals.